


Wintertime Secrets

by Leandr



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Action, F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-06
Updated: 2021-02-17
Packaged: 2021-03-07 16:00:31
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,181
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26850292
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Leandr/pseuds/Leandr
Summary: Miraculous Ski AU!It's winter in Chamonix, and two teenage, winter sport stars might have time to fall in love--if they can sort through their hectic schedules first.Fair warning: I'm not very good at writing/updating consistently, so...
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Comments: 1
Kudos: 11





	1. Alley Cat

It was a very cold night.

The small town of Chamonix, nestled at the base of the Alps, was lit up in all sorts of warm-colored lamps and shop lights, but not even a thousand light bulbs could drive away the heavy darkness of a winter night.

Marinette carefully walked along the snowy pavement, clutching her cargo close to her chest. She was taking a shortcut—or what she had initially hoped was a shortcut—back to her family’s inn, but the dark alleys were making her nervous. And it didn’t help that the box she was carrying was interfering with her line of sight. 

“Ugh! I should’ve just taken the main road,” she muttered to herself. “I barely know where I am…”

But just as she was rounding a corner, she bumped into someone who seemed to have been in just as much of a rush. 

“Ahh,” Marinette cried, as the box slid from her hands and she stumbled a bit sideways. 

But with a strong arm the stranger steadied her, and caught the box with his other hand. 

“Hey, Mar-Mademoiselle! Sorry about that! Are you alright?”

Marinette looked up into a pair of friendly eyes, though in the dim light she couldn’t tell what color they were. His face was mostly hidden behind the sporty, black ski mask pulled up to his nose. A black helmet with green-mirrored ski goggles hid his hair from sight. But even in the dark, Marinette could see the small, neon green insignia painted on the front of the helmet.

“Chat Noir?”

“Oh! Um, yes. That’s me!” Marinette could see the smile in his eyes. “Why, are you a fan?”

“Huh? Uhhh, ye-yes! I mean, _I ’m_ too much of a clutz to ski or snowboard, but I’ve seen some of your races and you’re really good!”

“Thanks.” He adjusted his grip on her box and gently put an arm around her shoulder. “Though, I’m sure if you ever wanted to try it out, I could give you some lessons…”

His mouth may have been hidden, but Marinette could swear he was smiling mischievously. 

“No, really, I’m _wayyy_ too uncoordinated! And my parents would never let me do something so dangerous. But, um, thanks for the offer!”

She reached for her box, and he handed it to her. She smiled at him, and then proceeded to walk around him, hoping she could make it home without any other distractions. She would already be home a lot later than she had promised, and she could already imagine the earful she was going to get from her father. 

“Hey, wait!” Chat Noir called out, and ran to tap her on the shoulder. “Can I walk you home? I mean, assuming that’s where you’re going.”

“I’m fine. It’s not far from here.”

“Yeah, but you’re kind of taking a shady route. You’re lucky you’re not some rich tourist, but still. Wouldn’t want a nice girl like you to run into some bothersome strangers.”

“Bothersome strangers like you?”

“I may be a stranger, but I’d like to think that I’m a _delight_ to be around.”

“Yeah, I’m sure all your fangirls believe that,” Marinette thought to herself, and sighed.

“Plus,” Chat began, leaning a little closer, “I could take care of that heavy load for you.”

“Hm.” Her arms were getting a bit sore, and the biting cold wasn’t helping. “Sure. It’s a deal.”

“Great!”

Chat took the box from her, and the pair continued along the sidewalk. Marinette looked at him every few seconds, hoping he wouldn’t slip or drop her precious cargo. She rubbed her arms with her gloved hands, feeling a slight chill settling into her tired body. Waking up to train at ungodly hours every day for several days a week was starting to take its toll on her, and it didn’t help that her parents had put her on a six hour shift each day to help out with the holiday tourism. Hopefully, once late January rolled around, she could join more races without having to be tied down to the inn too often. But for now, she would be lucky if she could even sneak out for a single race. 

“You’re awfully quiet. Everything okay, Mademoiselle?”

They had finally reached one of the town’s main streets, and her inn was just a few blocks away. 

“It’s Marinette, by the way.”

“You look pretty cold, Marinette. By which I mean, pretty _and_ cold.”

He raised his eyebrows, she rolled her eyes.

“I’m fine. It’s just been a long day. Here, give me the box. The inn isn’t far and we’re on the main road, so I’ll be good to walk on my own from here.”

“Nonsense!” He moved the box a little out of reach from her outstretched arms. “I said I’d walk you home, and that’s what I’m going to do.”

“Geez, alright. Never knew you were such a prince.”

They strolled under hanging lights and decorations, past cozy storefronts and restaurants. Despite the late hour, there was still some life in the street. It wasn’t long before they reached the inn, and Marinette walked around to a side entrance that was more out of public sight. 

As she fumbled with her keys, she could feel Chat’s steady gaze on her, and she eventually dropped her keys, a little flustered. 

“Oh shoot!”

“Here, let me help.” 

He gently set the box on the ground, and reached for her keys just as she did, pink gloves brushing against black ones. She looked up at him and then away, wondering if she was blushing or if it was just the cold, and awkwardly pulled her hand back. He chuckled and stood up, removing his glove to turn the key in the door. 

“See? It’s a lot harder to hold the key with gloves on.”  
“Yeah, I know,” muttered Marinette. 

She looked down at her boots, and screamed internally. Why was she feeling so awkward around him?! She had seen how much of a dumbass he could be in competition as “Ladybug,” so why did she feel embarrassed around him now? For all he knew, he was a stranger to her anyways. 

But the feeling of a warm hand on her cheek pulled her out of her thoughts, and she looked up to see Chat’s smiling warmly at her (even if it was just with his eyes). 

“Your scarf’s a little messed up.”

He gently tugged on the fabric around her neck, fixing the uneven distribution so that the scarf did not cover her face. 

“There, that’s better.”

God, it was something in his eyes that was just so warm and inviting! He had the allure of a bonfire, and Marinette suddenly wondered if he was going to kiss her…

“Wait, what? Where did that thought come from,” she yelled in her head. 

Chat searched her face and gently pulled away his hand, and abruptly switched back into his polite, flirty persona.

“Well, it was a pleasure.” He stepped back and bowed dramatically. “Bonne nuit, Marinette.” 

With a little nod of his head, he walked past her, back into the brighter lights of the main street. Marinette watched his receding figure, before quickly snapping herself out of her trance. What was _with_ her, tonight? Geez!

She picked up the box, and pushed open the door with her hips, closing it swiftly behind her.


	2. Tit for Tat

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woohoo, another chapter! Hope y'all enjoy this.

“Shit, shit, shit!”

Marinette jogged through the streets towards the ski lifts and ski center, grateful she didn’t have to carry her heavy skis while making her way across the icy, morning snow. It was very quiet at this hour; the sun had risen only half an hour ago, and while passionate athletes like her and shopkeepers like her parents rose at six am, most people waited for a brighter sun to wake them up. 

“God, Tikki is going to kill me for running late!” Marinette muttered under breath. 

She turned the corner and saw up ahead the slight hill where the center lay, and beyond that, the ski lifts. Bursting with relief and excitement, she changed her pace into a full on sprint. However, a slight misstep on some hidden black ice sent her flying unexpectedly forward, and Marinette wondered if her life was finally going to flash in front of her eyes. 

She didn’t have to worry about that though, for a familiar pair of strong arms caught her before she could faceplant on the hard ground.

“Haha! M’lady! Fancy seeing you trip like that! Are you sure your goggles are on right?”

She looked up into Chat’s laughing face, his ski mask pulled down to his chin and his green goggles hiding his eyes. She would’ve made a quip back at him, had she not realized that she had instinctively gripped his torso a bit too tightly. Marinette screamed internally and tried to casually pull away, but Chat wouldn’t let her get away so easily.

“What, have I got your tongue, Ladybug?” He took one of her hands and dramatically spun her out. “Don’t be shy, I know you’ve fallen in love with me now that I’m your knight in shining armor.”

Yup, now that she could see him in proper lighting, there was no doubt that he grinned cockily with every single flirtatious remark he made. The realization almost made her giggle, but she hastily regained some composure.

“Dream on, Chat.” She slid her hand out of his grasp. “If you want to take _this_ Lady on a date, you need to get on my level first. By which I mean, you’re four gold medals behind, Chaton.”

She smirked at his exaggerated shock and turned to the center again, jogging more carefully this time. As she got closer, she thought she could see Tikki standing behind the sliding glass doors, as well as another figure to the side. In the corner of her eye, she noticed Chat running to catch up with her, and the pair of teenagers reached the center’s entrance at almost exactly the same time. 

The petit, black-haired woman, dressed entirely in red except for navy blue ski goggles, pursed her lips as Marinette and Chat entered together, subtly trying to hide a smile. Marinette ran over to her immediately, and started a long chain of frantic apologies.

“—and again, I’m really sorry—” 

Tikki lifted a hand to stop her.

“It’s fine, ‘Ladybug.’ I know you have a lot on your plate right now. Let’s not waste any more time though.”

Tikki led the way through a hallway to the equipment room, but Plagg had a bit more teasing and half-hearted scolding to do before he could lead Chat to the same place. By the time Marinette had finished strapping on her ski boots and was pulling her skis out of a special locker Tikki had gotten, Chat was only just starting to get his stuff together. 

“Bye-bye Chaton! Good luck on the slopes today!” Marinette hefted her skis over her shoulder with one arm and waved back at him with the other. “Don’t fall on your butt today!”

“You’re one to talk, M’Lady,” he yelled back from his seat on one of the wooden benches, still in the middle of strapping on a boot. “You know I can’t save you from face-planting off a ramp!”

“Oh, don’t worry. You may be ‘Chat Noir,’ but _I’m_ still better at landing on my feet.”

And with that, Marinette walked out the door with a smile, leaving poor Chat in a state of shock for the second time that day.

“Damn, kid.” Plagg pulled down his black sunglasses to mark another check in his little pocket-notebook. “Let’s see, two years, and…Ladybug is now winning by a point. Good for her. She didn’t use to be much of a smart-mouth.”

“Oh, shut-up, Plagg.”

The lanky older man smiled to himself, reminiscing about his own teenage days, before telling his student to stop being lovesick and “get a move on already!”

Hours passed, and the sun steadily rose higher into the sky, turning the slopes into blindingly white sheets. Various different skiers and snowboarders could be seen by now, as regular locals and families of tourists started piling onto the ski lifts at this later hour. Athletes like Chat Noir and Ladybug were flying down the racing and freestyle slopes however, as they had used the regular slopes as warmups earlier in their morning training. 

“So, M’Lady,” Chat began, shuffling over to Ladybug on his snowboard as they waited for the next lift. “How ‘bout a friendly race to finish up our morning?”

“No way, Chat.” She slid forward on her skis as the line progressed. “Tikki says I still need to polish up my technique on the moguls, and those are always killer on the thighs. I’m going to be way too tired to race.” 

Chat quickly shuffled forward to stay next to her, aiming to sit with her on the next swing that came around. 

“Why don’t we race on the moguls then? I’ll help you with your technique.”

Ladybug couldn’t see it behind his reflective goggles, but she could just tell he winked. 

“Don’t _you_ have some important jumps to work on, Chat?”

“Sure, and if we choose the left-most mogul slope, we can ski straight down to the mini-park with the ramps.”

“Hm…fine.”

“Yes!”

Chat reached his arms up in celebration, only to almost hit them on the lowering safety bar of the swing.

“Hey, watch it Chat! Help me put down the bar!”

“Sorry!”

The pair mostly rode in silence for the rest of the way up, and smoothly dismounted from the seat when they reached the top. They turned left and headed towards the mostly empty mogul slope, waiting a few minutes for the few skiers and snowboarders who were on the slope to finish. 

“Alright!” Chat shifted his goggles and tightened the straps on his feet. “Ready, M’lady?”

Marinette rolled her shoulders and quickly checked her ski boots. 

“Of course, Chaton.”

“Three, two, one, go!”

Red and black, the two teenage athletes flew down the slopes in blurs. Marinette grinned as she edged past Chat on the bumps of snow, feeling she had the upper hand on the moguls as a skier. Her zig zags were controlled and lightning fast, while Chat had to take wider curves. But even though she reached the end of the mogul slope a second or two before Chat, the race was not yet over.

They continued into the mini-park, which was thankfully still closed to the general public at the moment. Here the key was not so much speed as it was being able to successfully pull off jumps. They started with the small ramps first, slowly trying to one up one another. 

At the very end of the park was the “big ramp,” where people did all sorts of crazy jumps, with twists and flips of all kinds. Marinette felt confident she would reach the ramp first and ace one of her signature aerial twists. But right as she left the top edge of the ramp, finally in the air, she felt a shadow fly over her—Chat Noir was flipping diagonally right over her head!

It was all she could do to finish just one twist and land relatively safely, albeit not as gracefully as usual. She hastily skid to a stop near the fence at the edge of the mini-park, and vigorously planted her poles in the snow as Chat Noir glided over to her.

“What was that?! Are you crazy?! That was super dangerous!”

“Uhp!” He put a gloved finger near her mouth and lowered his voice. “Don't worry, I would _never_ hurt you. But get ready for that date, Ladybug, because I’ll be winning a ton of gold medals this season.” 

Marinette’s jaw dropped, and Chat took the opportunity to put one hand on her shoulder and another on her chin. 

“Your lips are gonna get pretty dry doing that. Sure you don’t want some chapstick, M’lady?”

He started to lean closer, and Marinette pushed him away, nearly knocking him back onto the snow.

“I’m fine, thanks. But don’t get too cocky Chaton, because I wouldn’t be so sure about that date just yet.”


	3. A Pleasant Afternoon

“Adrien.”

The blond teenager turned slightly in his seat to look back at the lean figure standing by the door.

“Yes father?”

“There’s been a change in schedule. You’ll be doing a shoot this Friday.”

“But that’s the last day of Christmas break,” Adrien mumbled to himself.

“What was that?”

“Nothing, nothing.”

“I hope you kept to your usual routine in the past two weeks, Adrien. It would be an embarrassment to have a model who’s gained a few pounds show off a new sports line.”

“Oh, you have no idea how hard I’ve been working off my ass,” Adrien thought to himself. Every single snack he got from the cafe in the Dupain-Cheng inn was well earned from the early morning training sessions he did with Plagg. Day after day, for the past two weeks, he had snuck out in the morning and returned at around 11, hoping Natalie wouldn’t notice—or, at the very least, accept his lame excuses and explanations. 

“Well?”

“Yes, Father,” he replied monotonously, and stared at Gabriel’s back as the man walked out of the dining room.

He sighed.

Of course, it was ridiculous to take the bait with anything his father said. Gabriel was always trying to push him over the edge and start an argument, just so he could revoke some freedom and punish him. He had learned that the hard way a long time ago. Still, that didn’t mean the quiet, biting remarks hurt any less. 

He stared out the window at the snow, hand on his chin, wondering about how the rest of his Sunday morning would play out. His phone suddenly buzzed, and Adrien stood up from the dining table, leaving his empty breakfast plate to go to his room. He quietly closed the door behind him, and answered the call.

“Plagg?”

“Hey, kid. Just found out about a competition that’s happening in three weeks—and on a Saturday, too. Do you want me to sign you up for it?”

“Uh, I don’t know. School starts next week and I don’t know what work my father has planned for me. Sometimes he gives me the weekends free, sometimes he doesn’t. He’s been more unpredictable than usual lately.”

“Ladybug is signed up.”

“Really?” Adrien blushed as he realized his voice had almost gone up a full octave. “Uh—ahem. I mean—wait, you know her real name?”

“No, kid. I know her fake ‘real name,’ the one Tikki signs on all the official documents.”

“Oh.”

So Ladybug was hiding from her family _and_ the general public...just like him.

What was her personal life like?

“Hello? Romeo? Just give me a yes or no. There will be other competitions this winter, anyways. And don’t forget about the one you have in a few days!”

“Yeah! Uh, just, sign me up, alright Plagg? And don’t worry, I’ll be sure to win gold this time.”

“Of course. You have to catch up with your lady.”

“Plagg!”

How did he—had he overheard them? 

“Catch you later, kid!”

The older man ended the call with a childish snicker, much to his protégé‘s chagrin. Adrien sprawled onto his bed, and was prepared to stare at the ceiling for a few moments to contemplate his busy morning. But this would not come to be, as his phone began to buzz again. 

“Hey, Nino! What’s up?”

“Dude! Glad you picked up fast, because I kinda have an emergency favor to ask. Marinette asked Alya for help with something this afternoon, but we were originally planning to go see a movie together. Would you mind helping Marinette instead? This usually wouldn’t be a big deal, but I, uh, have a surprise gift for Alya that I wanted to give to her on our date today, and, well—”

“Yeah, Nino. I’ll do it. Have fun with Alya, and let me know how it goes!”

“Thanks bro! You’re the best!”

Nino pretended to give him a kiss and Adrien chuckled as he ended the call. He put his phone down on his nightstand and stared out the window, hands on his hips. 

Helping out Marinette—that would be fun, right? Or at the very least, more interesting than staying in his room all day. Did she need help carrying more supplies, like that night he walked with her in the alley? 

He eyed the box under his bed, and bit his lip. It was almost noon now, and he was supposed to meet Marinette at her family’s apartment at two. But it could be fun to walk around town as Chat until then, maybe even bump into Marinette herself at some point. Then again, he’d have to come back to his room to change out of his typical Chat outfit. Even just wearing his jacket or snow pants could potentially give himself away to her, especially since she (and almost everyone else) believed Adrien didn’t know how to snowboard. 

“Crap,” he mumbled to himself. “I guess I’ll just have to wait here…”

There wasn’t much he could do in the next two hours, to be honest. Adrien walked over to his bed, and flopped back down on it, resigned. After staring at the ceiling for a moment, he accidentally drifted off to sleep.

Fortunately for Adrien, he awoke to his phone chiming quietly. He immediately picked it up, and saw the alert he had set for himself.

“It’s 1:40 already? Shit!”

He hastily slid off the piano stool and ran over to his closet, pulling on a white winter coat and slipping on his snow boats, before dashing out the door with his phone in one hand and his wallet in the other.

“Adrien? Where are you going?”

Adrien stopped suddenly by the door at the sound of Nathalie’s voice, cursed himself for not sneaking out his window, and turned around to see her standing in the doorway of the dining hall. 

“I’m going in town to see some friends.”

“It’s a bit of a walk to reach the town’s center. Let me get—”

“No need! Some exercise would be good for me anyways, and I’m kind of in a rush. Bye Nathalie!” 

He slipped out the door before she could say another word and ran down the driveway and onto the long stretch of road that snaked towards the town. Had it been summer, he could have biked his way down, but, alas, the risk of slipping on ice or snow was just too great—and he wasn’t in the mood to enrage his father by tearing his designer clothes.

He took a left at some point, running (and occasionally sliding) down the smaller road. It was one of his usual shortcuts, since it led to some of the back alleys on the edge of town. Within ten minutes or so he had made it to a side street, and followed it to one of the main roads that crossed the town’s center. 

It didn’t take long for him to navigate the lively streets, still covered in Christmas decorations and full of people on their way to ski or to lunch, and find himself in front of the inn. 

Adrien stood with his hands in his pockets and looked up at the cream-colored walls and dark balconies of the Dupain-Cheng inn. To be honest, he had assumed Marinette’s family lived somewhere in the inn itself, but he was embarrassingly unsure about that. Quite frankly, he couldn’t remember the last time he was in Marinette’s home or anything. 

“Excuse m—oof!”

Adrien instinctively turned towards the source of the impact, even as he stumbled sideways a bit.

“Sorry,” he blurted, and reached forward to steady what happened to be Marinette. “Are you alright?”

“W-what? Oh! Adrien!” Her arms froze in place, and he gently took some of the paper grocery bags from her. “I’m fine! Totally fine! Just, uh, can’t see where I’m going! All my fault, ha ha.”

She blushed, and looked away. 

“It’s all good, I’ll just carry this in for you.”

She looked at him curiously and blinked a few times, her arms awkwardly still half out-reached. 

“Oh! No, um,” she said, after it finally registered with her that he had taken them from her arms, “you don’t have to!”

“Seriously, I’d be happy to. After all, if I hadn’t been standing in the middle of the sidewalk, you probably wouldn’t have bumped into me.”

“True, I guess. Um, follow me then!”

Marinette led the way to the side entrance, Adrien close behind. He smiled as he noticed her take off her gloves so as to fumble less with her keys. She held the door open for him, and he stepped into a small stairwell that didn’t seem to be part of the regular inn. 

“Come on, it’s just straight up. D-do you want me to take one of the, um, bags from you?”

“No, it’s fine! Lead the way.”

They walked up several flights of stairs, passing a few white doors, before reaching the top and finding themselves in front of a blue door.

“Our apartment is part of the top floor. The doors below lead to the hallways with the actual inn rooms, but guests usually don’t use these stairs,” Marinette explained, as she unlocked the door and let him in. 

“Wow,” Adrien whispered under his breath.

The kitchen and living room were laid right before him, in all their cozy glory: a couch with a messily folded blanket and a worn throw pillow, a coffee table with books and magazines stacked on top of it, a plate on the kitchen table, a sweater on a chair, and the lingering scent of a home-cooked meal in the air. 

“You just drop the—oh! Crap!”

Marinette rushed over the kitchen table to snatch the sweater off the chair and place the used plate in the sink.

“Sorry for the mess! I swear it’s not usually—well, not _always_ —like this!”

“What? No, it’s fine!” Adrien gently dumped the grocery bags onto the kitchen table. “I think your apartment is lovely.”

Marinette opened her mouth to speak but quickly closed it and blushed. She looked to the side and grasped her hands, before looking back to see Adrien staring right at her, a polite, friendly smile on his face. She immediately broke eye contact and tried to find something else to look at. 

“So! Um. I guess we should go back into town then! Alya was going to help me run more errands, but that’d probably be boring for you.”

“Not at all! I’m down to do anything you’d like. Always happy to help out a friend.”

Marinette smiled and stifled what would have been a very girlish giggle, taking a second to compose herself. 

“Right, then! Let’s get to it!”

The pair headed out of the inn, with Marinette leading the way. They walked into various stores along the main street, stopping by a few clothing stores, a pharmacy, a place for stationary, and a deli. Adrien watched quietly and followed Marinette as she drifted from aisle to aisle or shelf to shelf, eyes lost in thought. It seemed that she was constantly making calculations in her head, weighing different factors in seconds. In fact, it seemed that at some point she almost forgot Adrien was even there—but he really didn’t mind. Actually, he kind of liked it. It was nice to not feel the weight of special expectations, and just enjoy his friend’s company. 

“Gosh, Adrien! I’m so sorry!” Marinette hurried over to him with a new bag in hand, pulling him out of his thoughts. “We’ve been running around these places all afternoon together but I just keep leaving you in some corner or other and wandering off to do my own thing.”

“It’s fine, really! I don’t mind. I _agreed_ to help you.”

“No, it’s not fine! It was rude of me to not check in with you at least. Ugh, I’m such an idiot!”

“You’re not an idiot, Marinette. You’re very smart.”

They locked eyes, and Marinette couldn’t help but feel a swarm of butterflies rise in her stomach as she stared into the depths of his green irises, sending chills in her limbs. She suddenly broke eye contact.

“Um, thanks,” she murmured. 

“Here, I can carry that. Any other stops for the day?”

“I mean, I’m officially done with errands, but it’d be a waste of a cold day not to get hot chocolate from the place on the corner.”

“Alright! Lead the way, M’la—Marinette.”

Adrien bit his lip and mentally kicked himself, hoping Marinette hadn’t noticed his strange slip-up. And why was he so suddenly reminded of Ladybug for no reason? He shook his head of the thought and hurried to catch up. 

On their way to the cafe on the corner, they passed by a display screen of sorts, which switched abruptly from a weather report to an ad for Gabriel Agreste sportswear, with Adrien modeling a ski jacket front and center. He stood in front of a backdrop of the snowy Alps, but it was very obviously green-screened. 

“Oh, it’s you Adrien!” 

“Yeah.”

“D-do you, um, actually ski?”

“N-no, no. My father’s afraid I’ll hurt myself.”

“Oh, right. Of course. Same with my parents. It’s a shame though—it’d be nice to join Alya and Nino on the slopes sometime.”

“I’m sure it’s a lot more comfortable to sit in the ski lodge drinking hot chocolate than it is to race down the slopes with all the wind and cold, right?”

Marinette looked down. 

“Right.”

They continued on to the cafe, smiling gratefully as they pushed open the glass doors and felt the warmth of the interior. They ordered their drinks and sat down at a table, Marinette’s purchases carefully dumped on the floor between their feet. A waitress came to deliver their mugs of hot chocolate, and the two teenagers sighed with satisfaction as they embraced the warm mugs with their hands. 

“So, what else do you have planned for the day?”

“Hate to disappoint you Adrien, but after this I’m just planning to go home and sleep. I’m really worn out fro—...from this morning.”

“Oh. Yeah. I know the feeling.”

The afternoon was going to be over so soon? Well, it _had_ been a few hours; it was already five-thirty. But he didn’t want to go back home yet. Marinette had such a pleasant air about her, and he couldn’t help but wish that he had more time to hang out with her. 

“Something wrong, Adrien?”

“No, nothing. I’ll walk you home, of course.”

Marinette smiled and sipped the last of her hot chocolate. As she looked out the cafe window, framed by ice and snow, Adrien stared at her glossy hair, before downing the last of his own hot chocolate. 

“Good?”

“Yup! Let’s go.”

As they neared the inn, Adrien grew a bit quieter, and lagged behind Marinette. By the time they reached the door, he had grown completely silent.   
“Okay, now,” Marinette began, as she unlocked the door and swung it open, “I _know_ there’s something wrong. What is it?”

“What? No. Really. Everything’s fine! Let’s just get inside so I can drop off your bags before my hands freeze.”

“Wait, you’re not wearing gloves?!”

“Uh, no? I forgot to grab them on my way out.”

“What?!”

He chuckled, a little confused at her reaction, and Marinette hastily pulled him inside. She started ranting to him about how terrible it was for his fingers and his skin to go outside in _this_ cold gloveless, practically pushing him up the stairs as she spoke.

“And I can’t believe you haven’t mentioned anything until now! It’s a long walk from here to your house too—I can’t just let you go out again! Especially since it’s going to get dark out soon, and be even colder!”

Adrien sighed with a smile as he dropped off her bags by her kitchen table.

“Marinette, it’s okay! I promise I’ll be fine. I’ll just keep my hands in my pockets.”

“No, no. I have just the perfect solution! Wait right here!”

She dashed up the stairs to her room, and returned a minute or so later with a pair of knitted gloves in hand.

“I had started knitting these a week ago to practice my knitting skills, and I’d be happy to give them to you. But they’re not quite finished yet, so you’ll have to give me a few minutes to add the last touches, if you don’t mind.”

“Sure! I’d love a pair of Marinette-mittens.”

She giggled, and dashed back up to her room. He wasn’t sure if he should follow or not, so he sat down on the living room couch and waited. He picked up a sports magazine from the coffee table, but there wasn’t much of anything interesting in it, so he put it back. 

Twenty minutes passed, and Marinette still hadn’t come down yet. It was probably okay if he came up to check on her, right?

“Marinette? Is it okay if I come in?”

He gently opened the door, and found her half-asleep at her desk. The blue gloves lay beside her head, but it was hard for him to tell if they were really finished or not. He felt rude about leaving without her knowing, so he softly patted her back.

“Marinette?”

“Hm? Huh? Oh!”

She suddenly sat up in her chair, wide awake.

“Did I really fall asleep? How embarrassing!”

“I would have let you sleep, but I didn’t want to leave without a word. Plus, I wasn’t sure if the gloves were finished or not.”

“Oh gosh, sorry! I can’t believe I fell asleep! Yes, here, the gloves are done!”

He took them from her hands and tried one on.

“Hey, fits like a—well, like a glove.”

She rolled her eyes and he chuckled.

“Thank you, Marinette. They’re very soft.”

He kissed her on the cheek, walked towards the door of her bedroom. 

“Wait, Adrien!”

He turned around, and saw her flushed face.

“Yeah?”

“Let me know whenever you want to hang out or talk, okay?”

“Sure.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait! I'm having trouble organizing and planning chapters, oops (not to mention writer's block yay)


	4. Breaking Focus

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait! This chapter is a bit different, but I hope you like it!

When he had taken the gloves, she had felt his _wonderfully_ warm hands brush against hers, and in that moment she had doubted whether there was really any point in giving him her gloves.

“Marinette?”

And then he had given her the sweetest goodbye kiss, and she had just stared at his smiling face as he stood by the door to her room. In all honesty, she had barely registered the words that had come out of her mouth—all she really remembered was the parting look he gave her before he disappeared out the door.

“Marinette.”

And there was just _something_ in his eyes that had been so strange to her. Like he had been hiding something behind his smile.

“Marinette!”

“Sorry!”

Marinette shook herself out of her thoughts and looked up to see Tikki staring down at her, lips pursed. 

“Did you hear _anything_ I said?”

“Um…”

The older woman sighed, and raised her goggles so that she could make direct eye contact with her student.

“Marinette, this is _serious_. I’m sure you have a lot going on, and a lot to think about, but I really need you to focus right now.”

“Right.” She straightened herself up on the bench. “Of course.”

“There’s been rumors that an athlete secretly sponsored by ‘Hawkmoth’ is participating in the competition Wednesday.” Tikki briefly looked around, but the room was still free of any strangers. “And I’m sure you understand the implications of that.”

“Yeah.” Marinette bit her lip. “Another doping scandal we’ll need to expose.”

“Yes. But not just that—there’s the possibility that Hawkmoth might take it a step further this time.”

“What do you mean? His only goal seems to be to lure as many promising athletes as possible with steroids and stolen gear. And we don’t even know why he wants to do that!”

“Mm. Well…” Tikki paused to sit next to her. “I don’t know if you remember, but a year ago or so, there was a sabotage attempt during one of the big finalist races. It failed, of course, because Plagg and I caught wind of it. But, a lot of the KWAMI organization members are worried that Hawkmoth is paying more and more attention to you and Chat Noir. So—”

“So you think this contestant will try to directly sabotage me or Chat on Wednesday?”

“That’s the general idea, yes.” Tikki placed her hand on Marinette’s shoulder. “I’ll need you to be as alert as possible. Notify me or Plagg _immediately_ the moment you think you see anyone suspicious. Especially since Chat isn’t—well, he can’t—”

“Yeah, I know.” Marinette sighed. “Best not to involve him.”

Tikki’s hand gently slid off as Marinette stood up. Marinette turned to the wall to grab her skis, and timidly thought to herself: “Yet.” It had been hard for her, working on all these side missions solo since she started—well, without Chat at least. But Tikki had always been afraid that Chat was just a little too immature to handle the more serious problems. Marinette had a feeling Tikki knew something about Chat that she didn’t, and yet, somehow, Marinette also believed she knew Chat better than her mentor. 

Marinette clenched her jaw for a moment, before following the older woman out the door. In her mind, she saw Chat as a capable partner and most certainly a good person. Which meant that if he ever found out how many missions she had done by herself—without her telling him directly—he would likely be heartbroken, feel betrayed… 

“Marinette! Hurry up!”

“Sorry!”

God, she really had to concentrate on the present moment! What was wrong with her today? All she could think about today were boys, apparently. 

She followed Tikki into the lift, which would bring them close to the peak of the mountain. Fortunately, they had the carriage all to themselves, which allowed Tikki to further brief Marinette about their current mission. 

“Once we reach the top, we’ll go down the other side and join the small team that’s already there. We’ll have to be fast but careful—the off-piste area on that side is pretty rough.”

“Okay, but who are we looking for, exactly? What was the distress call for?”

“Someone called saying one of the members of their group had broken their skis after accidentally sliding into a rock. I imagine that their skis must not be the only thing that’s broken, however…”

“Yeah.” Marinette looked away and bit her lip. “They must have been going really fast for their skis to actually _break_. Or, at least, they must have hit it at a bad angle.”

“Mm.”

They sat in silence for a moment, as Marinette tried to mentally prepare herself for the task ahead.

“Wait, Tikki, if someone is possibly injured, then why not just call in the helicopter?”

“We’ll have an easier time locating them than the helicopter. From what I heard, they passed a forested area on their way towards the more open valley, which would mean they were heading east. But otherwise, it might be difficult figuring out exactly where they are. Especially since it doesn’t seem like any of them are wearing avalanche beacons.”

Marinette pursed her lips and sighed.

“I hope they didn’t move then…”

“Yes, let’s hope.” Tikki stood up as the carriage slowed. “We’re here.”

The door slid open and they walked off onto the platform, their boots clunking awkwardly on the cold metal. They quickly set their skis down in the snow and connected their boots, double checking to make sure their feet were secure. Marinette looked at Tikki and nodded, giving her mentor the signal to take off. 

They started down the other side, ignoring the confused glances of a few tourists. Marinette followed Tikki’s lead, and it took them about 15 minutes of skiing southeast in the empty open, in the thick, fresh snow, to reach the rest of the rescue group. When they saw the small gathering of red uniforms, the pair slowed and skidded to a stop a couple meters away. 

Marinette gratefully leaned over her poles, catching her breath for a moment. 

“So, any news,” Tikki asked the group. 

“We expected you to be here a little earlier,” a man replied, moving a bit forward so that he could be seen by everyone. “What was the holdup?”

“Sorry. We tried to come here as quickly as we could.” Tikki glanced back at Marinette, who had yet to regain her composure. “As you can see…”

A few people smiled, but the man dismissed her comment and quickly moved on.

“The plan is to split up into four groups of two. One group will go above the woods, another will go below the woods, and two groups will go into the woods.”

“What if it turns out the group is in the other direction completely,” Marinette interrupted. “Isn’t it possible for them to have been referring to the outcrop of trees that’s farther west?”

The man briefly glanced at her, before readjusting his goggles and continuing.

“Unlikely. But thank you for your concern, _Ladybug_. Now then, the groups are as follows: Myself and Jade, Dubois and Marc, Tikki and Alix, and Louis with Ladybug. Jade and I will go below, Tikki and Alix will go above, and the two remaining groups will go in the woods. Try to keep some distance though, so as to cover as much ground as possible. The woods are fairly wide.”

He turned his head to look at everyone, as if waiting for any complaints. But no one was in the mood to break the silence of the cold mountain air. He gave a little shrug and started adjusting his gloves, and everyone followed suit. 

Before long, the group split into the necessary groups, and Marinette watched as Tikki was soon out of her sight. She looked behind her to see Louis still trailing behind her. Evidently he seemed content to let her take the lead—even though Marinette was sure that she was younger than him. Though, to be fair, he couldn’t have been a lot older than her.

She watched as Dubois and Marc entered the forest farther up on the steep mountainside. She gathered some speed and aimed closer towards the center of the forest, hoping that they would be able to work their way down as they passed through the trees.

“Ladybug, wait up!”

Marinette abruptly slowed down, stopping just before the trees. She looked to her right and saw Louis hastily making his way towards her.

“Why the hell did you suddenly speed up like that?”

She was prepared to tell him that “time isn’t exactly on our side, dingus,” but stopped herself and took a breath before speaking. 

“Sorry. I’m just eager to find these people. I’m sure you are too, so we should get going.”

She unplanted her poles and pushed off, without waiting for a reply. She curved around the trees, trying to make a path through the least narrow parts while still maintaining some speed.

“Hey! What are you doing?”

Marinette gritted her teeth and skidded to a stop again. 

“You won’t be able to see them in the woods if you go so quickly!”

“It doesn’t matter. They’re not _in_ the woods.”

“How do you know that?”

“They specified that their friend had broken their skis on a _rock_ , right? There are some rocks here, but if they were passing through these woods so recklessly, it’s more likely they would have slammed into a tree. My guess is that they gained speed when they saw the trees opening up, and didn’t notice a rock hiding under the fresh snow when they emerged.”

“Well, okay, I guess, but—”

“You can trail behind me and look for any signs of trails or disturbance, but I’m going ahead.”

She looked at him, hoping that he would feel the intensity of her stare behind her mirrored ski goggles. He opened and closed his mouth in resignation, and she gave a curt nod before pushing off once again. 

The trees and the snow surrounded them in a sort of bubble, and Marinette realized she would not be able to count on really hearing anything to find the group in question. All she could hear were her own skis sliding through the snow, and the faint sound of Louis far behind her. Still, Marinette was sure she was right, and that she would find them just beyond the end of the woods.

After a few minutes, she noticed the trees starting to thin, and she slowed down a little. She squinted, trying to see if she could pick out anything unusual in the bright, white landscape she was entering. 

“Over there!” Marinette pointed at the figures sitting at the very edges of the forest. “That must be them!”

She started going down, expertly weaving between the remaining trees and avoiding any potentially unsafe indentations in the snow. 

“Ladybug, wait!”

But Marinette ignored Louis and continued, reaching the small group in a matter of a few minutes. She skidded to a stop when she was about four meters away, looking down at the group. All three members were sitting awkwardly in the snow, and Marinette assumed the person in the middle without any skis was the one injured.

“Hi there! I’m Ladybug, and I’m part of the rescue group that’s been searching for you.” 

They looked at her, but did not immediately reply. Marinette suddenly felt a little uncomfortable.

“Um, you _are_ the group that called for help, right?”

“You’re Ladybug?”

“Uhh, yeah? I mean, don’t you recognize the helmet, ha ha?”

The person closest to her looked back at their group members, and then looked back at her. Each one was clad entirely in black, and it was hard to tell them apart with their goggles and ski masks on. The only noticeable difference was that the one closer to her had purple skis, while the farthest one had grey ones.

The purple-skis person started to stand. 

“Look, you don’t have to stand up. In fact, it’s probably better if you sit still and wait for my, err, colleagues. I’ll radio them, and they’ll be here soon, and everything will be alright.”

She tried to smile, but didn’t receive much of a warm response from the group.

“You know,” the person started to say quietly, “it’s pretty shitty to have to end up being helped by _you_ , of all people.”

“What?”

“It’d be a lot easier to win races without you around. What kind of dope are you getting anyway?”

“Excuse me?”

Marinette instinctively backed away a little, and reached for the radio in her pocket. 

“I mean, come on! There’s no way you score gold in almost every single race without some kind of ‘help!’ Whatever Hawkmoth gives out is cheap, but it’s clearly not as good as whatever you’re getting.”

“You seriously think I’ve been taking steroids to win this whole time?”

“I mean, you must be hiding _something_ , right? That weird little organization you’re sponsored by lets you enter races while hiding your identity—just like what Hawkmoth promises to his athletes.”

“Look, you don’t know anything about my life! And my organization is _nothing_ like Hawkmoth! So don’t start talking about things you know nothing about!” 

The guy stood silent for a moment, and Marinette took the opportunity to hastily radio Tikki. Thankfully, all she needed to say were a few words, and Tikki promised to alert the others and be on her way. Marinette stuffed the radio back into her pocket, and stared back at the group. To her surprise, the guy had unclipped his boots from his skis, and planted his poles in the snow beside them. 

“Hey, what are you doing?”

He turned towards her. 

“I’m going to push you down this fucking mountainside,” he growled. 

He started towards her, and Marinette immediately slid out of the way, almost losing her balance. Before he could charge towards her again, Louis skidded to a stop right in front of him.

“What do you think you’re doing? Are you crazy?”

Marinette let out a breath of relief, and the guy slowly backed away and sat down again. Louis slid down closer to her, briefly glancing at her before quietly resolving to keep a firm eye on the group. She could tell he wanted to ask her what had led to such a reaction from the guy, but she was grateful he didn’t ask. It was in this moment that she realized how much she longed for Chat’s company. 

Soon enough, all three other groups joined them, with Jade and Francois coming in last. As it turned out, the middle group member had probably broken their ankle, and was unable to walk. Marinette found it strange that they did not complain about the pain, but decided not to comment on it, and just stood and watched as a helicopter came to pick up the poor teenager. 

“Very stoic, I think,” Tikki muttered to her, as the teen was lifted up into the helicopter.

“Yeah…” 

✸✸✸

“Marinette? Something wrong?”

Marinette stared down into her mug of hot chocolate, and didn’t reply.

“Come on, you should be proud of yourself! You did well on this mission.”

“Yeah.” 

She took a sip, and looked up at Tikki. The petite woman smiled at her, her blue eyes bright with pride as she took a bite out of a cookie. 

“Tikki.”

“What is it?”

“I wish I hadn’t found the group first.”

“What? Why not? You didn’t do anything wrong, no matter what Francois was complaining about.”

“It’s not that. The guy with the purple skis, he—…” Marinette trailed off and sighed. “He said he wanted to push me down the slope.”

“What? Really?”

“Yeah.” Marinette felt some tears come to her eyes. “He accused me of cheating and of being just like Hawkmoth.”

“Oh, Marinette.” Tikki moved her chair to sit closer to her. “Those are just words of frustration and desperation. As much as it may hurt, you can’t take it personally.”

“Tikki, we’re supposed to prevent people like him from turning to Hawkmoth for ‘help!’ But what if I’m actually just making it worse? What if I’m just pushing them away, towards him? They’re angry at _me_! W-What, should I start losing races on purpose?”

“No, no that wouldn’t be a good solution.” Tikki put her hand on Marinette’s shoulder. “People are inspired by your confidence and sense of integrity. You must keep proving to everyone that it’s your personal kind of strength that allows you to succeed. You’re a good person, Marinette, and I hope you realize just how much good you’re doing.”

Tikki patted her shoulder, and Marinette gave a small smile.

“Thanks. You’re the best.”

“Anytime.”

Marinette looked out the window of the ski lodge, and saw the orange glow of the sun starting to set. She thanked Tikki for the hot chocolate and left, pulling her ski goggles over her eyes as she walked out the door. The walk to her apartment was going to seem very long in her tired state, and she just hoped her parents wouldn’t ask too many questions.


	5. Tomcat

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was originally going to be a very different chapter, but I scrapped it and wrote this instead. Hope you enjoy it!

Chat waved at the little children as they ran towards the main building, awkwardly dragging along their snowboards behind them. He smiled as they squealed and shouted and laughed, surprising their parents waiting by the glass doors. 

“Ugh. Kids,” Plagg muttered, sliding up beside him. “I can’t believe you  _ like _ teaching them.”

“What? They’re great! They’re always so full of enthusiasm, and they have like, no fear. You get them comfortable with falling, and then they’re good to go.”

“Go to the bathroom every five minutes, you mean.”

Chat rolled his eyes. 

“It’s a miracle you ever taught anyone, Plagg.”

“Hey, I don’t work with kids, alright? Teenagers are the  _ youngest _ I can handle. You’re lucky I didn’t turn you away—you looked pretty shrimpy for a 14 year old, y’know. I was afraid one fall would break you in half.”

Chat grinned and brought his arms up to flex his biceps.

“And now look at me!”

“Tch. And now look at you.”

Chat pouted, letting his arms fall to his sides, which elicited a quick grin from Plagg.

“Anyways, kid, it’s probably time you head home. I know your dad keeps you on a tight schedule, and the sun’s already setting so…”

“Yeah, yeah. Back into my cage I go.”

Plagg’s grin turned into a slight grimace, but he didn’t reply. Adrien adjusted his goggles and checked his pockets, before starting to walk. He turned around briefly one last time to yell a goodbye.

“By Plagg! See you Wednesday!”

“Yup! Don’t be late!”

“I’m never late!”

Despite the distance and Plagg’s dark sunglasses, Adrien could tell his mentor was raising an eyebrow at him, and he let out a little chuckle. He turned back and continued onto the street, humming some piano melody or other quietly to himself as he walked. The street lamps were just starting to turn on, as were a few shops signs. There were people wandering about, but it wasn’t particularly crowded. The current lull in traffic was just the daily break between afternoon tourists and those seeking dinner, though. If he remained in the downtown area for another half hour or so, he’d start to find himself in the midst of a decent-sized crowd. 

A car suddenly honked at him, and he held up his hand in apology, dashing to the other side of the street. Adrien pulled up his goggles to feel some cold air on his face, hoping it would wake him up a bit. He hadn’t realized how tired he was, and it seemed he had just absentmindedly walked through town for the past few minutes. He looked up and saw the Dupain-Cheng inn, and couldn’t help but be reminded of his afternoon with Marinette from the other day.

He was about to move on, when he thought he saw a flash of movement by the side alley. He hesitated, unsure of whether it would be wise to check it out, but decided to anyways—just in case. He peeked into the alley, eyeing the side door. But there wasn’t anyone or anything there. 

Chat pursed his lips. He had been sure of seeing  _ something _ . He stepped into the alley to take a better look. In the far corner, shrouded in darkness, was the bottom of a fire-escape. He followed its outline upwards, until he spotted a figure sitting outside on a balcony. Worried the person might have been locked out of their room or worse, he immediately set to scaling the fire-escape, climbing it as nimbly as he could.

When he reached the balcony in question, he clambered over the handrail without hesitation, landing on the balcony itself with a small thud. He looked up just in time to see a very startled Marinette sitting against the wall. 

“Ahh!”

“Agh!”

“What the hell?!”

“Sorry!”

Chat leaned back onto the handrail and looked away, trying to calm himself and appear a little more casual. Marinette shifted her position, hugging her knees.

“So? Explanation, please?”

“Apologies, Princess. I, uh, didn’t realize you were the one here.”

Marinette blushed, and Chat suddenly realized all the different ways his statement could be interpreted. Marinette, for her part, had been caught more off-guard by the new nickname than anything else, but tried to compose herself immediately.

“Do you have a habit of chasing girls up to their balconies?”

“No, never! I’m not  _ that _ type of tomcat. That might have sounded weird. What I mean is—I thought that maybe you were someone who had gotten stuck outside and needed help getting down or something.”

Marinette raised an eyebrow.

“Honest. I’m a gentleman first and foremost, Mademoiselle.”

Marinette sighed and relaxed her grip slightly, but still kept her back against the wall.

“Alright. Well. It’s just me. So you can leave now, I guess.”

He stopped leaning on the handrail and moved a little to the side, closer to the wall, still leaving some space in between them. 

“You look upset, though,” he said softly.

Surprised at his sudden change in tone, Marinette quickly looked away, avoiding his eyes. Although his face was mostly covered by his black scarf, and the setting sun further shrouded his features, his eyes radiated an intensity she wasn’t sure she was in the right state to face.

“I’m just tired.”

He didn’t budge.

“That’s all. Really.”

Chat crouched down into a somewhat awkward sitting position and inched a little closer to her.

“Not sure I can believe that, Marinette.”

She still couldn’t look him directly in the eye, and he inched even closer, until there was only half a meter of space between them. He then properly sat down, letting his left shoulder rest on the wall so that he could still face her. 

“Come on. I’m sure you would feel better talking through it with someone.”

Marinette sighed again, and rubbed her face. She couldn’t tell him about the incident with the rescue team, right? He didn’t know she wasn’t allowed to ski as Marinette, but he might figure out she was Ladybug—or at least had possible connections to Ladybug—if she said anything about it, and she wasn’t sure she would be able to handle that. 

But if she didn’t say something soon, he would get suspicious.

“It’s...um...a  _ customer _ got pretty angry with me today. Sort of.”

“What? Why?”

“Well, I—...I was trying to help them out with something. But I don’t think I was doing it quite right. And I had to wait until my, um,  _ mom _ and another person came to help sort out the issue. And even though my mom said that I did nothing wrong, I still kind of feel bad about it.”

She put her face in her hands for a moment, hoping he wouldn’t be able to see through her half-assed, half-lie. She looked up to her right briefly, and saw Chat leaning his beanie-covered head against the wall.

“Hm. But why do you feel so bad about it? If your mom says you did all you could, then it’s okay, right?”

“Well...I guess I’ve just never seen a stranger get so angry with me before? I know it’s not necessarily my fault that they hate me, but it still hurts. It still feels like I failed my job, and that I can’t make up for it. Like, they’ll never accept my apology and they’ll always just be angry...”

Marinette trailed off, and the pair sat in silence. She suddenly became aware of how unusually deep that might have sounded for just a bad encounter with a customer, and mentally kicked herself. At this rate, Chat was probably going to think she was a pathetic softie who couldn’t handle a few mean words.

To her surprise, Chat had been pondering her reply pretty seriously, staring at the darkening sky with a somewhat wistful expression. 

“Some people are just like that, I guess,” he finally said. “No matter what you do, they’ll find something wrong with it, with you. They’re just impossible to please, for one reason or another. Better not to think about it too long, or it’ll take years off your life.”

He looked back at her with what she could sort of tell was a smile, and this time, Marinette did not shy away from the direct eye contact.

“Trust me.”

She opened her mouth to say something, but her mind was blank. All she could do was stare into his eyes, where the last of the sun’s orange rays reflected in his irises. And once again, she was reminded of a bonfire. But this time, she felt she saw more than just plain warmth. It was more than just a cozy campfire; there was something in him that burned more like a wildfire. Something that was just barely restricted, something hot and maybe even a bit violent in its intensity. 

Chat, meanwhile, felt himself being pulled in by her stare. Her eyes contained all the power of the dark ocean waves—both the alluring calm and the breathtaking storms. He had never quite been able to really gaze into her eyes like this as Adrien, and he was kind of in shock at just how captivating her eyes were. He had gotten close to finding out that night in the alley, but her face was much better lit now than it had been then.

It was at this point that Chat realized just how close their faces were. He had done most of the leaning in, but it was a pleasant surprise to notice that Marinette’s back was no longer touching the wall. He could almost feel the warmth of her breath through the scarf covering his face, and his forearm was close enough to brush against her thigh. 

“C-Chat…” Marinette whispered.

With the adrenaline rushing through his veins and his heart pounding in his chest, Chat’s felt that his brain was going to short-circuit if they just kept staring at each other. Little did he know, Marinette was thinking something similar.

“Chat,” Marinette repeated. “You...I…”

Chat tentatively put one hand on her cheek, and when Marinette did not pull away, he could feel his heart skip a beat. The warmth of his bare hand on her face still surprised her somehow, and she kept very still, afraid that even the slightest movement would result in the loss of his touch. 

His thumb gently moved closer to her lips, and Marinette let him tilt her head just slightly. He felt her arms hesitantly come up to his shoulders as he leaned closer, both of his knees on the cold balcony floor. He lightly placed his right arm down on Marinette’s hip, taking care not to let it slip onto the layer beneath her coat. 

“Chat, y-your scarf,” Marinette whispered. 

And just like that, alarm bells went off in his head. 

He tensed up and pulled away, quickly taking his hand away from her face to check that his black scarf was still hiding his face. 

“I’m sorry…”

She stared blankly at him, her face still flushed. They sat in silence for a moment while each waited for their brains to come up with the right words to say. 

“Wh-what’s wrong?”

“Marinette, I...I shouldn’t have tried to kiss you when you don’t even know who I really am.”

Marinette was once again rendered speechless, and he could see the precariousness of the situation begin to dawn on her. He furrowed his brow and shut his eyes, already chiding himself for not seeing how stupid it was of him to have tried to kiss her like this. 

“Oh…” He felt her arms slide down, and eventually off, him. “Um…”

He opened his eyes and set to searching hers, wondering if somewhere in their depths he could find out what she was really thinking and why she had seemed willing to kiss him. But did it really matter? After all, he had initiated it. What if she had just been following his lead? 

“Marinette, I’m sorry. It was...I started it. And it was a dumb idea.”

He let his arm slide off her as well, and slowly leaned away from her further. 

“I’m just—I shouldn’t have taken advantage of your mood like that. And I’m sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable or anything.”

“Chat…”

She had pulled up her knees closer to her chest again; she was closing herself off. Chat felt a wave of sadness wash over him all at once—the ultimate crash had finally come from that near adrenaline high. She had opened up to him, and he had to go and ruin it by trying to kiss her like an absolute idiot. He knew he wasn’t ready to tell her he was really her friend and classmate Adrien. Nor was he all that ready to give up on his feelings for Ladybug. 

And had they really kissed just then... he knew a kiss like that could never have been “just a kiss,” with no strings attached. Not in his mind, anyways. 

He tried to shake himself of the thought. As he slowly stood up, he forced himself not to make eye contact. The cold winter air felt particularly biting without Marinette’s warmth, and he felt a chill run down his spine. 

“I’m sorry. I should go.”

“Chat, wait.” 

He bit his lip.

“Chat,  _ please _ .”

He finally conceded and looked into her eyes, which were now pricked with a few tears.

“Great,” he thought, “now I made her cry. I’m such an ass.”

“Chat, you didn’t, um, make me feel uncomfortable. The moment—the feeling was, er, mutual.”

Chat’s breath hitched in his chest, and they both blushed furiously. She hastily brushed away a few tears on her sleeve.

“UH, what I  _ mean _ is...I don’t know. You don’t have to apologize, I guess, is really what I’m trying to say.”

He looked away. It would have been easy to just accept her apology and forgive himself, but he couldn’t. Something in his mind was holding him back, and the negative cloud of thoughts refused to go away. His heart was only growing heavier in his chest, and these conflicting feelings were quickly becoming another source of confusion for him. 

She reached for his hand, and despite his whirlwind of thoughts, he didn’t pull away from her touch. From her seated position, she looked up at him imploringly, forcing him to make eye contact with her. 

“I really mean it. Please don’t be a stranger. I’d like to talk with you more.”

Once again, the ocean in her eyes seemed to pull him in. Only this time, they had a calming effect on him; the negative cloud in his mind dissolved, and he made his decision. Taking her hand into his own, he leaned down to kiss it, hoping she could feel some of his warmth in spite of his scarf.

“I’ll keep that in mind, Princess.”

He indulged in looking into her eyes one last time before leaving, hoping he could just telepathically relate to her all the feelings he wanted to convey. She gave a small smile, and that was enough to make him feel like he could push past his mess of emotions and continue on his way.

When she was sure Chat had left, however, Marinette let out a sigh and felt a heaviness in her own chest that threatened to call back her earlier tears.

“He can’t possibly flirt like that with every girl he meets…” she muttered to herself. 


End file.
